Long-term effect of interferon alpha-2b plus ribavirin therapy on incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with hepatitis C virus-related cirrhosis

• Published in: Journal of viral hepatitis 2006-06, Vol.13 (6), p.409-414
• Main Authors: Hung, C.-H., Lee, C.-M., Lu, S.-N., Wang, J.-H., Hu, T.-H., Tung, H.-D., Chen, C.-H., Chen, W.-J., Changchien, C.-S.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Antiviral Agents - therapeutic use; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular - epidemiology; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular - prevention & control; cirrhosis; Drug Therapy, Combination; Female; Hepatitis C - complications; Hepatitis C - drug therapy; Hepatitis C virus; hepatocellular carcinoma; Humans; Incidence; interferon; Interferon-alpha - therapeutic use; Liver Cirrhosis - complications; Liver Cirrhosis - drug therapy; Male; Middle Aged; Recombinant Proteins; ribavirin; Ribavirin - therapeutic use; Time Factors; Treatment Outcome
• ISSN: 1352-0504; 1365-2893
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2893.2005.00707.x

We assessed the efficacy of interferon (IFN) alpha‐2b plus ribavirin therapy in patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV)‐related cirrhosis, and elucidated the risk factors for the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) to determine whether these therapies might reduce the incidence of HCC. One hundred and thirty‐two HCV‐cirrhotic patients receiving IFN alpha‐2b (3 or 5 MU thrice weekly) and oral ribavirin (1000–1200 mg/day) for 24 or 48 weeks were analysed. Cumulative incidence of HCC was estimated by the Kaplan–Meier method. The prognostic relevance of clinical variables and HCC occurrence was evaluated by univariate analysis with the log‐rank test and by multivariate Cox's regression analysis. A total of 116 patients completed the treatment and 73 (55%) achieved a sustained virological response (SVR). Stepwise logistic regression analysis showed that nongenotype 1b (P